Moving advertising-machine.



WILLIAM W. BATES, OF ASEDG'rWICK, KANSAS.

MOVING ADVERTISING-MACHINE Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Jan. 16, 1912.

Application filed J'uly 2, 1910. Serial No. 570,152.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, WrLLrAM W. BATES, a citizen of the United States, residing at Sedgwick, in the county of Harvey and State of Kansas, have invented certain new and. useful Improvements in Moving AdvertisingNIachines; and I do declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same.

My invention relates to improvements in advertising or display machines which may be used in public places for general advertising or on a smaller scale in front of real estate oflices, in show windows of business houses, etc. v

The object of the invention is to provide a. simple and practical machine of this character having an endless apron carrying adu vertisements or displaying matter and actuated by a suitable motor which also actuates bells or other devices whereby attention is attracted to the machine, the advertisements being illuminated by flash lights when desirable. v

l/Vith the foregoing and other objects in view the invention consists of certain novel features of construction combination and arrangement of parts as will be more fully described and particularly pointed out in the appended claims.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure l is a front elevation of my improved machine. Fig. 2 is a vertical sectional view through the same. Fig. 3 is a horizontal section taken on line 3-3 of Fig. 2. Fig. 4 is a detail vertical section taken on line 1C-41 of Fig. 2. Fig. 5 is a detail sectional view showing the construction and mounting of one of the bells. Fig. 6 is a sectional view taken on line 6-6 of Fig. 5. Fig. 7 is a detail view showing one of the spring hammers and its connection with the sprocket chain.

My invention comprises a box or other suitable casing indicated by the numeral l and provided in its front with a sight opening covered by a glass plate 2. The rear wall 3 of the box is hingedly mounted at its lower end as shown at f1, and its free upper end is adapted to be secured by a suitable catch or fastening device as indicated at 5.

6 denotes a flexible endless apron made of canvas or other suitable material and on which may be painted or otherwise mounted, suitable advertisements or display matter. This apron passes over upper and lower series of cylindrical rollers 7, fixed to shafts journaled in upper and lower brackets S and the end walls of the box. These rollers are preferably arranged as clearly shown in Fig. 2 and have at their ends sprocket wheels around which pass the sprocket chains 9 fixed to the side edges of the apron whereby the apron will be prevented from slipping and positively driven. To the shaft 10 of one of the lowermost rollers is connected by means of an endless belt 11 and suitable pulleys, an electric motor 12, see Fig. 2. While I preferably employ an electric motor it will be understood that a spring motor or any other form of mot-ive power may be employed. I also preferably actuate the front stretch of the apron, (which stretch passes in rear vof the sight opening,) continuously, in an upward direction although the apron may be actuated in either direction and either continuously or intermittently. For the purpose of enabling the advertising matter on the apron to .be seen at night and also for the purpose of attracting attention to the matter, I may arrange electric Hash lamps 13 in groups or otherwise, around the sightopening of the casing on the inner side of the front wall of the same. Suitable reflectors 14 are arranged adjacent the lights 13 to direct the rays of light on the advertising matter exposed at the sight opening of the box.

In order to call attention to the machine I provide suitable bells 15 or other devices which are actuated from the motor 12. I preferably arrange these bells in two'vertical series and so construct and position them that when the machine is in operation, a tune will be played. Each of the bells is adjustably supported on a substantially Z- shaped bracket 16 having a horizontally disposed intermediate portion and two vertically disposed end portions or arms 17 and 18. The lower arm 17 has secured to it the inverted bell 15, while the upper arm 18 is longitudinally slotted as at 19, to receive a clamping and pivoting screw 20, which fastens the bracket to an upright bar 21. Two of the bars are provided, one being for each series of bells and they are screwed or otherwise secured, as at 22, to the inner face of the swinging back 3 of the box. By mounting the bell brackets or hangers 16 in this manner it will be seen that they may be adjusted vertically and also angularly to properly position them with respect to their hammers, hereinafter described, so that they will be struck at the proper time to produce the desired eect. The bells are adapted to be successively struck by spring hammers 23 each consisting of a suitable head mounted on a spring or resilient strip, which latter has its inner end fixed, as at 24, to one of the pivot pins of a sprocket chain 25. Of course one of the chains 25 is provided on each side of the machine for each of the two series of bells and said chains pass around sprocket wheels on the shafts 26 of the two rearmost rollers of the apron 9. These shafts, 26, it will be noted, have their ends journaled in the end walls of the boX while the shafts of the-'other apron rollers are journaled in the brackets S, see Figs. 2 and 3. In order t-o insure the sounding of the bells as the hammers pass them, I provide on each of the brackets 16 a trip arm 27 which is normally so arranged that the hammers will engage it and be sprung .laterally so that when the hammers slip off of it they will give the bell a sharp tap andv produce the proper sound. In order to permit one or more of the bells to be thrown out of operation, the trip arms 27 are pivotally mounted as shown at 28, in recesses 29 formed in the brackets at the upper extremities of the depending arms 17 and for the purpose of preventing the trip arms from dropping below a -horizontal plane, stop lugs 30 are formed on the arms 17 immediately beneath the recesses 29, see Figs. 5 and 6. Then it is desired to throw one of the bells out of operation it is only necessary to swing the arm 27 from its full line to its dotted line position shown in Fig. 5.

From the foregoing it will be seen that my invention provides an exceedingly simple and practical moving advertising machine which will be entirely automatic in operation and exceedingly attractive. Various advertisements may be applied to the apron and they will be successively brought into view through the transparent plate at the sight opening, and attention will be called to them, not only by the flash lights 18, but also by the bells or gongs 15. By so constructing these bells the machine may be made to play different tunes when in operation, and by adjusting the bells by means of their adjustable brackets 16 and by throwing into and out of operation certain of the bells by means of the pivoted trip arms 27, the machine may be made to produce various different tunes or sounds which will attract attention to the machine.

From the foregoing description taken in connection with the accompanying drawings,

the construction and operation of the invention will be readily understood without requiring a more extended explanation.

Changes in the form, proportion and minor details of construction may be resorted to without departing from the principle or sacrificing any of the advantages of this invention as defined in the appended claims.

I claim:

1. In a machine of the character described, the combination of a support, a series of brackets adjustably mounted on said support, bells carried by said brackets, trip arms pivoted on said brackets adjacent said bells, a movable element carrying spring hammers to co-act with said trip armsand bells, and stops for limiting the downward movement of said trip arms.

2. In a machine of the class described, the combination of a support, a series of brackets mounted on said support, bells arranged on said brackets, trip elements pivoted on said brackets, a movable element carrying hammers to contact with said bells and trip elements, and means for limiting the downward movement of said trip elements.

3. In a machine of the class described, the combination of a support, a series of substantially Z shaped brackets adjustably mounted on said support with the intermediate portions thereof disposed horizontally and their ends arranged vertically the free ends depending, bells arranged on the depending ends of said brackets, and a movable element carrying hammers to coact with said bells, trip arms pivoted on said brackets and extending normally into the path of the said hammers, and means for limiting the downward movement of the said trip arms.

4. In a machine of the class described., the combination of a support, a series of substantially Z shaped brackets adjustably mounted on said support with the intermediate portions thereofdisposed horizontally, ahd their ends arranged vertically the free ends depending, bells arranged on the depending ends of said brackets, a movable element carrying hammers to coact with said bells, trip arms pivoted on said brackets and extending normally into the path of the said hammers, and lugs arranged in the path of said trip arms for limiting their downward movement.

In testimony whereof I have hereunto set my hand in presence of two subscribing witnesses.

VILLIAM WV. BATES.

IVitnesses C. H. GRIESBAUER, J. ANDREW GRIEsBAUnn, Jr.

Copies-of this patent may be obtainedfor ve cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents,

Washington, D. C. 

